Emergency responders and state police troopers arrive at the scene of a suicide under the Judge Graff Bridge in Manor Township Monday afternoon.

by Jonathan Weaver

A man was pronounced dead yesterday afternoon after jumping off a local bridge.

A 52-year-old Indiana County man jumped off the Judge Graff Bridge at approximately 1:20PM Monday and fell to his death near Garretts Run Road in Manor Township.

Identification of the man was not released until his next-of-kin was notified of the incident.

Armstrong County Deputy Coroner Bernie Bowser Sr. responded to the scene and proclaimed the cause of death.

“Cause of death was suicide, witnessed by two plain-clothed state police officers,” Bowser said.

The victim reportedly parked his vehicle on top of the bridge.

The body was found near the Coal Street intersection of Garretts Run Road.

State Police Corporal Joe Murphy was the lead investigator of the suicide and described what police troopers responded to.

“We were notified through 9-1-1 dispatch that an individual was on the edge of the Graff Bridge,” Murphy said. “Troopers were dispatched. When the troopers arrived on-scene, they saw the vehicle parked there and the individual on the edge of the bridge. Upon exiting the patrol car, the observed the individual jump off the bridge.”

Ford City Ambulance emergency crews and Manor Township volunteer firefighters also responded to the scene.